Reviewed: iPad Speaker Stand – class without crass

In swag-factor alone, Logitech’s iPad Speaker Stand succeeds. The iPad (or iPhone if you’re daring or stupid enough) cradles into the dock, charges and blasts music out of the ultra-loud speakers. For US$60 or so, it is a worthy purchase.

Best part, the click when the iPad is rotated in place. Here, I’ve filmed it for posterity.

Why’s my arm so hairy?

The speaker is stable, pumps out incredibly loud music without distortion and turns the iPad into a hot, sexy display of tech goodness. Sound is full stereo, the arm of the base is pitch adjustable and looks damn snazzy. Downsides? It would be nice if the speaker stand operated as a stand-alone device, as it needs constant AC power. A docked stand would have been ideal. Other than that, there are no downsides.

And its utility cannot be questioned. This is an unshakably showy piece of tech. A vanity piece for Apple’s magnum opus. All too often iPads, such as the one on my office desk, remain stagnant. Its use is multitudinous, but diving into applications becomes a weighty chore. My iPhone has now replaced my iPad for status updates and news snippets which is ironic as the iPad, when first released, became the device which replaced all gadgets save from my mobile phone. The speaker stand champions the king of tablets back into usability.

The stand is more than a stereo speaker dock. It’s a transformative device which changes the iPad for the better. Its cost is low, its footprint is small and the clicking sound it makes when you shift from landscape to portrait view is sublime. This is simply a great device, let down by its inability to be wall mounted, which would no doubt send its usability status over the edge. Buy it.